Luoyang, the night is deep and quiet.
The sky is as black as ink, occasionally a few starlight pierces through the gaps in the clouds, directly reaching the human world, as if it were telling ancient legends.
The distant mountains are faintly visible in the night, as if they were giant beasts that had not yet fallen asleep at the edge of the sky.
The trees' shadows sway gently with the night wind, making a rustling sound. The babbling stream becomes clearer in the tranquility of the night.
Chen Yun was immersed in the gains after the Ten Thousand Demons' Try Mind.
At this moment, he was like a person soaked in the cold night rain, bathed in a hot spring.
The surging of the internal Dan Qi, and the approach of his mental state to the perfect state, brought him immense gains.
Suddenly, ripples appeared in the air in front of me, and a snow-white figure appeared.
Chen Yun turned his head and saw Xie Ziran, now in her true appearance, her white skirt fluttering. The starlight illuminated her delicate face, which was like a piece of art, shining resplendently.
Beautiful to the point of shining, this was an exaggerated description.
However, at this moment, looking at Xie Ziran's ethereal and pure appearance, he realized for the first time that being beautiful to the point of glowing was not an exaggerated description. On the contrary, it was a literal description.
How could there be such a spiritual person in the world?
Chen Yun sighed in admiration, bowing without hesitation, "I, Chen Pu, have the honor to meet Xie Ziran."
Xie Ziran floated in the air, neither looking at Chen Yun nor looking at him. Instead, she slightly looked up at the stars and said, "It's been a while since we last met. How have you been recently?"
"Pu is doing very well. It's nice of you, Xie Ziran, to care about me," Chen Yun said gratefully. "I am truly grateful for your help just now. Otherwise, I might have been trapped in the demon realm and caused harm to the people."
Xie Ziran slowly advanced forward, floating in the air, with a calm tone and without any waves: "Even if I hadn't intervened, you could have withstood the demon realm on your own."
Chen Yun floated after her, wind-driven, and said with a wry smile, "I'm not so sure. I feel that my mental cultivation is still insufficient."
"The rapid increase in cultivation and the unequal mental cultivation are very natural." Xie Ziran still slowly advanced forward, floating in the air, with a calm tone: "Think back to when I was twenty-seven years old and flew to heaven in broad daylight. I was as unstable as you, but as long as I could stick to my original intention, no matter how big the storms in the world, they cannot shake my will to seek enlightenment."
Indeed, it is quite normal for the speed of my cultivation to increase too quickly, and my mental state to fall behind.
Chen Yun was not without mental training; in fact, he had always been very attentive to his mental cultivation.
For example, when he was in the inner cave of the Yueye Lake, a future disciple showed him the scene of creating the heavens and earths, which greatly helped in his mental cultivation.
After that, when Chen Yun's father passed away, he went through another struggle. Finally, under the reminder of the Western King Mother, his mental cultivation also improved a lot.
Just as the mental cultivation is like cultivation, it varies and is applicable at different stages.
The mental cultivation suitable for an upper-level practitioner may not be suitable for an advanced practitioner, while the mental cultivation suitable for an advanced practitioner may not be suitable for a teacher.
This time, Chen Yun had not yet managed to synchronize his mental cultivation with his spiritual cultivation before he was invaded by the Land Demon, which overwhelmed him, making it understandable.
Everything has its process; it's not possible to achieve things overnight.
Chen Yun knew that perhaps this time he was going down to the mortal world to protect Zhao Kuangyin's safety, it could be a great opportunity to practice mental cultivation.
After a brief conversation, the two had already floated out of the city of Luoyang.
Chen Yun asked with some curiosity, "Teacher, where are we going?"
Xie Ziran said, "I am going to the Laojun Mountain. Where do you want to go?"
This statement left me a bit baffled. I was following you, so why are you asking me where I want to go?
Chen Yun thought Xie Ziran was trying to send him away, feeling rather embarrassed, "I thought when Teacher wanted to meet, it was to take me to Laojun Mountain together."
Xie Ziran said, "I asked you, what is your heart, and where do you want to go?"
Where does my heart wish to go?
At this question, Chen Yun truly felt a bit confused.
He has been reincarnated in this world for about thirty to forty years. Originally, he had no idea about the existence of immortals, and he only wanted to improve his family environment.
Then, through his father's "planning," he had the fortunate opportunity to become a disciple of the Path Transmission Temple.
Ever since then, he has been single-mindedly seeking enlightenment, only to achieve immortality and everlasting life.
Chen Yun asked himself, what was the purpose of achieving immortality and everlasting life?
To live longer?
To understand the principles of the Dao and perceive the truth of the world?
These seem to be not so important.
The meaning of life is the process and experience, not the ultimate result.
Perhaps it was Xie Ziran's question that Chen Yun first realized that he was practicing for the sake of practice, in short, for the result, which seemed to have ignored the process and experience.
The process and experience?
This involves philosophical aspects.
Suddenly, Chen Yun suddenly remembered a poem by Su Shi.
In the poem "Ding Feng Bo - Returning from the South Sea to Wang Dingguo, the Servant of a Nobleman" by Su Shi, there is a line that says: "This is my hometown where my heart feels at peace."
Chen Yun replied, "To look up at the high mountains, to walk the path that leads to them. Although I may not reach them, my heart yearns for it."
This phrase comes from the "Records of the Grand Historian" by Sima Qian, and its general meaning is: To praise one's character and scholarship as high mountains to be looked up to, and to make people naturally follow his conduct as a standard of action, even though I may not reach it, but still yearn for it.
Xie Ziran, of course, understood that Chen Yun was not expressing his own virtues or conduct, but rather using the Great Dao as a metaphor for the high mountains and the path to walk. He was expressing that although he has not yet reached that level, he is always striving towards it.
She faintly praised him and said, "Your idea is very good. I hope that your cultivation of the Dao will be as constant as the moon, as the sun rises. As long as the mountain of Nan passes, it will not be moved or broken. Like pine trees and cypresses, they will be strong and bear fruits."
Chen Yun said, "Be diligent."
Xie Ziran changed the subject, "Do you know where I am going?"
Chen Yun was startled and said, "Teacher, isn't it as you said earlier, going to Laojun Mountain?"
Xie Ziran said, "I am going to Laojun Mountain. Do you know why?"
Chen Yun shook his head, "I don't know."
Xie Ziran said, "The original name of Laojun Mountain was Jingshi Mountain, but why did it become known as the Old Man Mountain?"
This fact is known to Chen Yun, as the legend goes that in the Spring and Autumn period, Laozi retired to Jingshi Mountain for cultivation. Laozi was also regarded as one of the embodiments of the Old Man. Later, during the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Taizong of Tang recognized Laozi as his ancestor and established a unified empire. In the 11th year of Zhengwu era (627), Emperor Taizong sent Yuchi Jingde to rebuild the Iron Peak Laojun Temple on Jingshi Mountain and named it "Laojun Mountain". This is how Jingshi Mountain became known as Laojun Mountain.
He recounted what he knew.
Xie Ziran lightly nodded and said, "That's because Laojun Mountain is the place where Laozi retired, so he occasionally appears in this place, without a fixed period, purely by chance."
Chen Yun guessed immediately, "You mean that tonight, Laozi will appear on Laojun Mountain?"
Xie Ziran said, "That's right. Laozi will be expounding the Dao tonight, and if we can hear even a little bit of it, it will be of great benefit to our cultivation. Therefore, I came here early to listen to Laozi expound on the Dao."
Chen Yun didn't expect that he would actually have the opportunity to listen to Laozi lecture. At this moment, his heart was very stirred.
Although Laozi is just one of the incarnations of Taotianold Master, Laozi's position in Daoism is too lofty, and anyone wants to witness this sage.
According to legend, Laozi is the eighteenth avatar of the Old Man.
Of course, in the "Eighty-one Transformations of the Old Man" diagram, Laozi is the 23rd transformation.
Regardless of which record is true, it sufficiently illustrates one thing: Laozi is indeed an avatar of the Old Man, and he is also the most famous among all the avatars.
You know that there are other great immortals as Guangchengzi and Amitabha who are avatars of the Old Man, but Laozi, as the eighteenth avatar, has the most famous name among all the avatars. It is certain that his cultivation among all the avatars is also one of the top.
Therefore, to be able to hear a figure like this expound the Dao, it is undoubtedly an incredible honor.
Chen Yun couldn't help but be carried away by his thoughts, longing to see the divine presence of the Dao ancestor, Laozi.
...
Arrive at Laojun Mountain.
Chen Yun saw in front of him a spectacle of five colors and ten hues, with ethereal sounds wafting and rising in mist.
There seems to be an enchanting sound mixed with the night wind that is intoxicating.
He wanted to hear clearly what these celestial sounds meant, but unfortunately, no matter how hard Chen Yun tried, he could not understand what information the celestial sounds were conveying.
Nevertheless, he still made an effort to firmly etch these celestial sounds into his mind, thinking that one day he might be able to uncover the mysteries within.
Again, he didn't go far for a while.
Chen Yun saw many figures seated at the front. However, even when his cultivation reached the level of a teacher, these figures still appeared blurry to him, as if they did not exist in his world.
In the midst of thousands upon thousands of shadowy figures gathered, there sat an elder with a naturally noble countenance, a complexion of yellow and white, beautiful eyebrows, a broad forehead, large eyes and long ears, square mouth and full lips, with two prominent nose bones and three ear holes.
It was indeed Laozi, as expected.
What struck Chen Yun as odd was that when he and Xie Ziran arrived at this place, he distinctly heard a pause in Laozi's expounding of the Dao. Moreover, he even noticed Laozi nodding slightly in his direction.
He wasn't sure if it was just an illusion or if Laozi knew Xie Ziran and was indicating something to him.
Unfortunately, Chen Yun was destined to not get an answer to this matter for the time being. Xie Ziran had already silently sat down outside the crowd in front.
Chen Yun pondered for a moment and didn't dare to disturb Laozi while he was expounding the Dao. He simply sat down randomly on the empty ground behind Xie Ziran.
Laozi's expounding of the Dao seemed to be drawing to a close, and the celestial sounds emanating from his mouth became more fervent. The whole world seemed to be rotating and constantly changing.
Chen Yun felt as if he were experiencing the changes of the four seasons—spring, summer, autumn, and winter—passing through him.
At the same time, he felt as if he was experiencing countless rebirth cycles.
Perhaps he and Xie Ziran came too late. After a moment, Laozi finished his expounding of the Dao and then said in a way that Chen Yun could understand, "In the Jade Capital, within the Golden Gate, concentrate your thoughts and project them to the realms of imagination, for they are common resting grounds."
With those words, the colorful mist began to rise, and Laozi's figure gradually dissolved.
Almost simultaneously, the faint figures around them disappeared as well.
However, Chen Yun was still immersed in the lingering celestial sounds of Laozi's expounding of the Dao. Although he hadn't understood a single word, he had a profound sense of enlightenment and comprehension about the universe and everything in it.
It was as if, in that moment, he merged with the heavens, stars, and all living beings.
(This chapter is completed)
